Health care expenditures associated with pediatric pain-related conditions in the United States

The primary objective of this study was to assess the impact of pediatric pain-related conditions on health care expenditures. We analyzed data from a nationally representative sample of 6- to 17-year-old children captured in the 2007 National Health Interview Survey and 2008 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Health care expenditures of children with pain-related conditions were compared with those of children without pain-related conditions. Pain-related conditions were associated with incremental health care expenditures of $1339 (95% confidence interval [CI], $248-$2447) per capita. Extrapolated to the nation, pediatric pain-related conditions were associated with $11.8 billion (95% CI, $2.18-$21.5 billion) in total incremental health care expenditures. The incremental health care expenditures associated with pediatric pain-related conditions were similar to those of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder ($9.23 billion; 95% CI, $1.89-$18.1 billion), but more than those associated with asthma ($5.35 billion; 95% CI, $0-$12.3 billion) and obesity ($0.73 billion; 95% CI, $6.28-$8.81 billion). Health care expenditures for pediatric pain-related conditions exert a considerable economic burden on society. Efforts to prevent and treat pediatric pain-related conditions are urgently needed.